Water Severing Wave

As the Great Elder, he naturally knew everything there was to know about Keigo.

He knew every little thing that happened to Keigo Uchiha each day.

"You're not joking with me, are you? I heard you beat up your entire class by yourself today. You're already the strongest in the class."

"You could even say you're the most talented child in decades. So why are you in such a hurry to get stronger?"

The Great Elder's cloudy eyes were full of confusion.

At first, he'd worried that outside influences might affect Keigo and make him gradually grow complacent.

But to his surprise,

Keigo had shown no sign of slowing down his training.

Instead, he was training faster and faster.

And spending more and more time at it!

He no longer worried about whether Keigo was working hard enough. Now he worried that the boy might wear himself out!

If anything happened to him,

he'd have no way to face Kagami!

"Why don't you... take a break?"

The Great Elder couldn't help asking tentatively.

Most people had to be pushed to train.

Here, he was practically begging Keigo to stop!

He was already strong enough!

"It's not enough. For a ninja, every bit of strength and every training session could be what keeps them alive in the future. Grandpa, training is the happiest thing in the world to me."

Keigo Uchiha shook his head and smiled. "I heard our ancestor, Uchiha Madara, was only twenty-three when he founded Konoha with the First. A true genius doesn't stand out just because of talent. What makes them exceptional is the perseverance to keep working harder than ordinary people."

"So I need to become stronger!"

"I want you to see the Uchiha Clan rise again as soon as possible!"

As someone who'd been reincarnated into this world,

he knew all too well how the Shinobi World would unfold.

Konoha was at its most stable right now. This was the perfect time for him to train quickly.

He couldn't let the opportunity slip by!

"You're right. So, is there anything you need my help with?"

The Great Elder's gaze was deep,

but it was full of affection as he looked at Keigo.

The boy before him had more drive and worked even harder than he'd imagined!

He was doing all this now to fulfill his dream of restoring the Uchiha Clan as soon as possible!

Otherwise, Keigo had no reason to work this hard!

"My Nintaijutsu training has hit a bottleneck."

Keigo Uchiha looked down at his hands, his dark eyes bright with amusement. His handsome, youthful face made him look like a young god!

"Because of my age, I can't make quick progress with Nintaijutsu. So the only way to rapidly increase my strength is to train in Storm Release!"

"This will be my strongest ability for the foreseeable future!"

"I already know Lightning Release and Water Release. By drawing on what I've learned from them, I can develop Storm Release into something even more powerful!"

Storm Release?!

The Great Elder froze.

Then he quickly understood.

"Keigo, are you planning to... create your own Storm Release?"

The Great Elder's eyes trembled. If that was the case, he would have to stay by Keigo's side. Creating a new jutsu was dangerous, and the slightest mistake could put the boy at risk!

"Let's go. Wait... Keigo, I'm going to gather some Uchiha elites to watch."

The Great Elder rose to his feet, then paused. After a moment's thought, he spoke.

His eyes gleamed as he said, each word deliberate, "Keigo, you're held in high regard and loved by everyone in the Uchiha Clan because of your father. But that doesn't mean everyone respects you."

"And now... you have a perfect opportunity. Your talent will be on display for the entire Uchiha Clan!"

Talent needed to be shown.

Strength needed to be witnessed!

A true Uchiha powerhouse had to earn recognition through strength!

The Great Elder's reasoning was simple.

The Uchiha elites would witness Keigo's talent, and it would also serve as a signal: he had chosen Keigo to groom as the next clan leader.

"I understand. Bring them here!"

Keigo Uchiha understood at once.

He was indeed powerful, with extraordinary talent, but the others had only heard about him. Apart from the brats at school, no one in the Uchiha Clan had witnessed his talent firsthand.

The Great Elder was putting his own reputation on the line for him.

He wanted Keigo's talent to be seen by the Uchiha elites.

He was smoothing the way for Keigo to become clan leader!

This was Keigo's opportunity.

And it was the Great Elder's wish, too!

Half an hour later,

at the Uchiha Clan's training ground,

more than a dozen Uchiha elites and the Great Elder surrounded Keigo. They were all Elite Jonin, the best of the best.

Every one of them was a Jonin with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan. With just their strength, they could wipe out a small village like Takigakure.

They watched Keigo in the center of the training ground with scrutiny and curiosity in their eyes.

They knew Keigo Uchiha well enough.

They'd all had dealings with Kagami Uchiha, and quite a few of them had been his friends.

"The Great Elder brought us here to see Keigo's strength! He wants us to witness the next generation's genius!"

"I've heard Keigo's talent is monstrous. No one at the Ninja Academy can match him!"

An Elite Jonin shook his head. He had a cold expression, and a long scar ran from the corner of his eye to his chin, twisting like a centipede.

"Coming first at the Ninja Academy doesn't mean much. Our Uchiha Clan has always produced geniuses. Being the top student of your year is nothing special. But this... this isn't enough!"

"Now that Keigo has shown his talent, Fugaku has already been removed from the list of clan leader candidates. The Great Elder has never made a foolish choice. I'm sure Keigo has talent enough to amaze us!"

"But if his talent falls short, then he'll lose his eligibility to become a candidate for clan leader!"

The group spoke calmly,

but their words were startling.

Each of them commanded their own elite squad and had a voice at Uchiha clan meetings.

In other words, they were the Uchiha Clan's core strength.

"Since I dared to bring Keigo here, I'm absolutely confident. If he succeeds, his glory will rise before all of you. If he fails, he'll face everyone's disappointment!"

The Great Elder spoke deliberately.

Everyone turned to him with respectful expressions.

He would either succeed or be discarded!

The Uchiha Clan's elite shinobi had all gathered to witness the talent of a younger generation.

Success would bring glory.

Failure would mean being cast aside!

The only thing that would decide his fate was Keigo Uchiha's talent!

"Then I'll begin, Great Elder."

Keigo Uchiha spoke respectfully. After bowing, he felt the chakra flowing through his body and, without hesitation, formed the Hand Seals for the Water Release Ninjutsu he'd studied that day and already memorized by heart!

The Hand Seals

were to build familiarity!

"Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"

Fourteen hand seals!

He formed them in just over two seconds. Then Keigo Uchiha spat out a fierce, high-pressure stream of water in a straight line!

It was like a blade!

It struck so quickly that no one could react!

The attack slammed into a lush, towering tree!

Ssshh!

The water blade split the trunk—wide enough for several people to wrap their arms around—almost in half. The entire tree swayed, on the verge of toppling!

"It destroyed an ancient tree! That's the power of an A-rank jutsu!"

"Keigo's only eight, and he can already do this!?"

"That's the Second's Water Release! How did Keigo learn it?!"

Everyone was completely dumbfounded!